Int. J. Engng Ed. Vol. 15, No. 1, pp. 14±19, 1999
Printed in Great Britain.
0949-149X/91 $3.00+0.00
# 1999 TEMPUS Publications.
WebPublishingÐA Multimedia-Oriented
Approach to WWW-based Learning*
CHRISTIAN LANGENBACH and FREIMUT BODENDORF
Department of Information Systems, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Lange Gasse 20,
90403 Nuremberg, Germany. E-mail: Langenbach@wiso.uni-erlangen.de
The quality of WWW-based learning depends on several critical success factors. Especially, the
course material on the WWW should not represent a one-to-one transfer of written lecture notes.
Added values like interaction and dialogue components, training modules, etc. should be provided.
This paper introduces an approach of multimedia-oriented WWW-based teachware packages
taking these demands into consideration. Applications are based on a series of reusable modules
providing core functionalities and serving as a framework for developing WWW-based teachware
packages with any type of content.
In the context of a teleteaching/telelearning
project at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg [3] a new approach to WWW-based learning is introduced. A major aim is to develop an
open environment for teaching, learning and cooperation, which provides learners with multimedia-oriented WWW-based teachware packages
on various subjects. These applications are based
on reusable modules, which provide core functionalities and serve as a framework for WWWbased teachware packages with any type of
content. The learner can make use of this framework through a control panel implemented in
Java, where different buttons give direct access to
the value-added functionalities. The following
sections show the most important features.
MOTIVATION
TECHNICAL DEVELOPMENTS in the fields
of communication and new media are important
pacemakers for the process of education reengineering. The distribution of informationÐ
especially via the Internet/WWWÐand the availability of powerful support systems (videoconferencing, groupware, authoring tools, etc.)
provide the platform for innovative forms of
teaching and learning. Media-based learning
resources cover conventional computer-based
training applications, electronic learning material
(e.g. PowerPoint slides, single educational WWW
pages), WWW-based courses, as well as various
forms of synchronous and asynchronous teleteaching/telelearning applications. Due to the
penetration and growth of the Internet, especially
WWW-based courses seem to be of special interest
for future educational scenarios.
To fully utilize the conceivable potential of
WWW-based learning, a set of critical success
factors needs to be taken into consideration [1].
For instance, course material on the WWW should
not represent a one-to-one transfer of written
lecture notes. Added values like interaction and
dialogue components, training modules, etc.
should be provided. Also, WWW-based courses
should not provide a `media overkill' forcing time
consuming data transfer in a networked environment. Multimedia elements should be integrated in
the sense of `opti-media'. Furthermore, the learners must not be left to study by themselves, as in
the classical CBT situation. Finally, WWW-based
course modules and contentsÐlike any other CBT
material [2]Ðshould be reusable. A course author
has to be able to easily combine existing and newly
created teaching material on the WWW into a
course of any sort.
REALIZATION APPROACH
Figure 1 shows the standard screen design. The
subdivision of the browser window into separate
frames is based on the layout suggested in [4]. The
presentation of course material in the information
frame (2) is managed through a control panel
situated in the control frame (1). This panelÐ
implemented in JavaÐprovides various buttons
which are dynamically enabled or disabled
depending on the context of the information
being displayed. The value-added functionalities
(e.g. navigational and orientation guides, online
manual and glossary, annotation pad, communication tools) can be activated by these buttons (see
Fig. 2). The frame-based implementation guarantees that the control panel is always directly
accessible. The problem of scrolling the navigation
out of bounds, which often occurs in longer
documents on the WWW with navigational areas
at the top or bottom of the document, is hence
avoided.
* Accepted 5 October 1998.
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WebPublishingÐan Approach to WWW-based learning
15
Fig. 1. Standard screen design.
Furthermore, dynamically updated tables of
contents for the individual chapter and the whole
course can be switched on and off in a separate
frame (3) by using two corresponding buttons on
the control panel. This approach enables the
learner to always easily determine his or her
exact position within the course without leaving
the guided tour.
A colour coding of course modules simplifies the
orientation within a teachware package. This
concept is implemented through a vertical colour
bar on the left border of each document (4). The
main course chapters of a teachware package have
a unique colour, so that the learner can use this
guide to always determine which part of the course
he or she is currently viewing. Longer course
modules also provide jump-spots as an additional
navigational aid. They are located in a side menu
(5) and ensure fast access to individual sections of
the course module. The colour of the jump-spots
corresponds to the vertical colour bar of that
particular module. In addition, there are other
coloured jump-regions in the side menu, which
provide particular interaction options and are
labelled as interaction-spots. Their colour coding
is consistent throughout the tutorial, e.g. red for
progression tests or blue for context oriented
interaction components.
Figure 3 shows a set of multimedia elements
which are frequently used. The key to Fig. 3:
(1) Audio/video clips taken from recordings of
lectures (QuickTime format)
(2) Illustrations taken from multimedia presentations (e. g., PowerPoint slides converted into
GIF format)
(3) Text passages taken from course books (e. g.,
Word files converted into HTML)
(4) Animations to explain difficult content
(QuickTime format)
Basically, the framework of value-added functionalities can be filled with multimedia course
material on any topic. This teaching materialÐat
our university frequently produced within a
synchronous teleteaching and telelearning context
and reused for the asynchronous approachÐ
Fig. 2. Buttons in the control panel and their fucntionality.
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C. Langenbach and F. Bodendorf
Fig. 3. Multimedia modules in a WWW-based teachware package.
consists of excerpts from video recordings of
lectures, corresponding digitized snapshots of
blackboard writings and overhead transparencies,
as well as of contents from multimedia presentations, electronic lecture notes, elements from
course textbooks, exercises, etc. In addition,
computer animations, textual, visual and audio
components are added and external supplementary
WWW resources can be linked.
The WWW-based teachware packages are implemented entirely in HTML, Java, JavaScript and
WWW-compatible media formats (e.g. graphics in
GIF and JPEG format, audio/video clips and
animations in QuickTime format), with no CGI
processes taking place. This enables on-line use on
the Internet or Intranet but also allows for off-line
use via CD-ROM.
VALUE-ADDED FUNCTIONALITIES
Navigational guides
A Java-applet is provided to simplify the navigation within the course material. In principle the
course content may be experienced in two ways.
First, through unstructured exploration (user
determined presentation). Second, by following a
predefined guided tour step by step (system determined presentation). If the user initially decides to
use the system-determined presentation, but leaves
Fig. 4. Navigational guides.
WebPublishingÐan Approach to WWW-based learning
17
Fig. 5. Interaction components.
the predefined path, for instance to follow links
and cross-references to supplementary external
resources on the WWW (composite-type presentation), he or she can always directly return to the
last viewed chapter of the on-line course by just
one mouse click. Figure 4 shows a schematic
representation of the navigational guides within a
composite type presentation.
If the learner selects a link to an external source
of information on the WWW, the system signals
that he or she is about to leave the guided tour of
the teachware package (1). At this point the user
has the option to return to the guided tour by
pressing the previous button (2a) or to follow the
external link (2b), which is then loaded from the
WWW into the information frame without relinquishing the functionality of the control panel.
Within the WWW the user can follow any other
links (3). By using the previous button he or she can
always directly return to the last chapter within the
guided tour (4), without having to use browserspecific aides like multiple clicks on the `back'
button.
The definition of a guided tour as the basis of
navigational support within WWW-based teachware packages differs from related research work
as described in [5±7]. In particular the complete
absence of CGI techniques is a new approach,
hence removing the need for any client-server
interaction.
Interaction components
The educational concept is influenced by the
constructivistic philosophy of learning, which
defines learning as an active, self-motivated,
context and situation-oriented social process [8].
While asynchronous on-demand forms of learning
inherently require active and self-motivated learning, the demand for context and situation-oriented
learning is satisfied by providing appropriate
interaction modules. They permit the interactive
discussion of authentic problems within the
individual learning context, and hence offer
means for immediately applying the knowledge
gained. For a HTML course for instance a JavaScript-based HTML test editorÐshown in Fig.
5Ðwas developed, which allows the interactive
creation (1) and illustration (2) of HTML documents without having to use an additional
application.
Progression tests
For standard progression tests a building block
was developed in Java (see Fig. 6), which
provides a simple definition of free-form and
multiple-choice questions and answers that can
be integrated into a WWW-based teachware
package.
Annotation pad
An annotation pad gives the learner the
opportunity to take individual notes on each
chapter.
On-line glossary and manual
The glossary is always available to access definitions of unclear terms without having to go
through any search procedures. An integrated
online manual offers the learner assistance with
the use of the teachware package, the functionalities of the core features introduced here, as well as
with operating the communication tools to get in
contact with the tutor, the technical support staff
and other learners.
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C. Langenbach and F. Bodendorf
Fig. 6. Progression tests.
Learner/tutor communication
During the on-line use of a teachware package in
a distributed teaching and learning environment
the learner must always be able to contact the tutor
and supporting technical staff through integrated
media channels [9]. Some interfaces for this type of
feedback and interaction can be activated by the
control panel.
Learner/learner communication
Multilateral communication among distributed
learners in an on-line course is realized. One of
the tools provided is a multimedia WWW-based
bulletin board system, accessible via a button in
the control panel. In this forum for asynchronous
discussion the tutor can create closed user groups,
where learners can jointly solve problems without
the feeling of being observed by a third party.
EVALUATION
WWW-based teachware packages have already
been integrated into the curriculum of students at
the Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences at
the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg. A first
evaluation of the introduced open environment
of teaching, learning and co-operation took place
during summer semester 1997. Within a three-week
period 60 students had access to a teachware
package being part of a business information
systems seminar. The tutor and the development
team were always available for questions regarding
content, technology and ergonomy. This tutoring
service was provided via asynchronous e-mail
communication and also via synchronous videoconferencing and groupware applications during
certain office hours.
Some of the aspects mentioned by the students
were: increased flexibility in terms of time and
place; suitable approach to gain basic knowledge
individually; variety of value-added functionalities
compared with other WWW-based courses; suitable means to immediately apply the knowledge in
the learning context.
The positive feedback to the prototype implementation `WebPublishing' (available at http://
teleteaching.wi2.uni-erlangen.de/WebPublishing/)
Ðaward winning in 1997's software competition
of the German Academic Software Co-operation
(ASK)Ðencourages an extended evaluation
beyond the boundaries of our university. An
evaluation of the approach is planned at several
German and Austrian universities and colleges, in
the area of teacher training as well as in companies. Among others, Siemens, Lufthansa and
Deutsche Telekom have stated their interest to
evaluate the multimedia-oriented WWW-based
teachware packages for their training purposes.
AcknowledgementsÐThe work is being pursued in the context
of a teleteaching/telelearning project, partially funded by the
German Federal Ministry of Education, Science, Research and
Technology. The authors thank Michael Stadelmann and Malte
Stoll for their excellent work in the implementation phase.
REFERENCES
1. C. Langenbach and F. Bodendorf, Satisfying critical sucess factors of WWW-based learningÐa
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of Technology on Learning, Proc. 7th World Conf. Continuing Engineering Education (WCCEE),
Turin, (1998) pp. 72±76.
WebPublishingÐan Approach to WWW-based learning
2. F. Bodendorf, K. Langer, A system architecture for flexible, knowledge-based, multimedia
CBT-applications, Int. J. Engineering Education, 12, (4), (1996) pp. 264±271.
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DISPLAYS, 17, (3±4), (1997) pp. 147±151.
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building WWW-based courses, Computer Networks and ISDN Systems, 28, (7±11), (1996)
pp. 1219±1231.
6. F. J. Hauck, Supporting hierachical guided tours in the World Wide Web, Computer Networks and
ISDN Systems, 28, (7±11), (1996) pp. 1233±1242.
7. P. Kutschera, Combining database technology with the WorldWideWeb for tele-teaching environments, in: A. P. Swiridow, P. Widmayer, W.-D. Oberhoff, H. Unger, (Eds.), New Media for
Education and Training in Computer Science, Infix, St. Augustin, (1996) pp. 99±108.
8. G. Reinmann-Rothmeier, H. Mandl, Multimediale Lernumgebungen, in: K. A. Geissler, G. v.
Landsberg, M. Reinartz, (Eds.), Handbuch Personalentwicklung und Training, Deutscher
Wirtschaftsdienst, Cologne (1997).
9. C. Graesel, J. Bruhn, H. Mandl, F. Fischer, Lernen mit Computernetzen aus konstruktivistischer
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Christian Langenbach, born 1968, studied Computer Science with supplementary courses in
Business Administration at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg. Since 1995 a member of
research staff and Ph.D. student at the Department of Information Systems of the
University of Erlangen-Nuremberg. His doctoral thesis project deals with the perspectives
of media-based education from a market-oriented point of view. In this context innovative
co-ordination instruments to support transactions in a future electronic education market
are being designed. Furthermore, he is working in several projects creating synchronous
teleteaching scenarios based on broadband networks and videoconferencing systems as well
as new forms of WWW-based learning.
Freimut Bodendorf, born 1953, studied Computer Science at the University of ErlangenNuremberg. He received his doctor degree in Business Information Systems. Subsequently
head of an IS department at the University of Freiburg, Germany, professor at the
Postgraduate School of Engineering in Nuremberg, Germany, and professor for Computer
Science and Information Systems at the University of Fribourg, Switzerland. Since 1989
head of the chair of Information Systems II at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg. His
research areas include information systems in the sector of rendered services, office
information systems, teleco-operation, business process design, workflow management,
workgroup support, communication management, electronic commerce, multi-agent
systems, and soft computing. Special fields of interest are teleteaching/telelearning,
web-based distance education and the development of multimedia-oriented teachware
packages.
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